The lipid kinase phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase III alpha (PI4KIIIα) is an essential host factor of hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication. PI4KIIIα catalyzes the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI4P) accumulating in HCV replicating cells due to enzyme activation resulting from its interaction with nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A). This study describes the interaction between PI4KIIIα and NS5A and its mechanistic role in viral RNA replication. We mapped the NS5A sequence involved in PI4KIIIα interaction to the carboxyterminal end of domain 1 and identified a highly conserved PI4KIIIα functional interaction site (PFIS) encompassing seven amino acids, which are essential for viral RNA replication. Mutations within this region were also impaired in NS5A-PI4KIIIα binding, reduced PI4P levels and altered the morphology of viral replication sites, reminiscent to the phenotype observed by silencing of PI4KIIIα. Interestingly, abrogation of RNA replication caused by mutations in the PFIS correlated with increased levels of hyperphosphorylated NS5A (p58), indicating that PI4KIIIα affects the phosphorylation status of NS5A. RNAi-mediated knockdown of PI4KIIIα or pharmacological ablation of kinase activity led to a relative increase of p58. In contrast, overexpression of enzymatically active PI4KIIIα increased relative abundance of basally phosphorylated NS5A (p56). PI4KIIIα therefore regulates the phosphorylation status of NS5A and viral RNA replication by favoring p56 or repressing p58 synthesis. Replication deficiencies of PFIS mutants in NS5A could not be rescued by increasing PI4P levels, but by supplying functional NS5A, supporting an essential role of PI4KIIIα in HCV replication regulating NS5A phosphorylation, thereby modulating the morphology of viral replication sites. In conclusion, we demonstrate that PI4KIIIα activity affects the NS5A phosphorylation status. Our results highlight the importance of PI4KIIIα in the morphogenesis of viral replication sites and its regulation by facilitating p56 synthesis.

Highly potent inhibitors of NS5A, such as daclatasvir, block replication of HCV RNA at the stage of membranous web biogenesis-a new paradigm in antiviral therapy.

Positive strand RNA viruses replicate in the cytoplasm of infected cells and induce intracellular membranous compartments harboring the sites of viral RNA synthesis. These replication factories are supposed to concentrate the components of the replicase and to shield replication intermediates from the host cell innate immune defense. Virus induced membrane alterations are often generated in coordination with host factors and can be grouped into different morphotypes. Recent advances in conventional and electron microscopy have contributed greatly to our understanding of their biogenesis, but still many questions remain how viral proteins capture membranes and subvert host factors for their need. In this review, we will discuss different representatives of positive strand RNA viruses and their ways of hijacking cellular membranes to establish replication complexes. We will further focus on host cell factors that are critically involved in formation of these membranes and how they contribute to viral replication.

Cardioviruses, including encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) and the human Saffold virus, are small non-enveloped viruses belonging to the Picornaviridae, a large family of positive-sense RNA [(+)RNA] viruses. All (+)RNA viruses remodel intracellular membranes into unique structures for viral genome replication. Accumulating evidence suggests that picornaviruses from different genera use different strategies to generate viral replication organelles (ROs). For instance, enteroviruses (e.g. poliovirus, coxsackievirus, rhinovirus) rely on the Golgi-localized phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase III beta (PI4KB), while cardioviruses replicate independently of the kinase. By which mechanisms cardioviruses develop their ROs is currently unknown. Here we show that cardioviruses manipulate another PI4K, namely the ER-localized phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase III alpha (PI4KA), to generate PI4P-enriched ROs. By siRNA-mediated knockdown and pharmacological inhibition, we demonstrate that PI4KA is an essential host factor for EMCV genome replication. We reveal that the EMCV nonstructural protein 3A interacts with and is responsible for PI4KA recruitment to viral ROs. The ensuing phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI4P) proved important for the recruitment of oxysterol-binding protein (OSBP), which delivers cholesterol to EMCV ROs in a PI4P-dependent manner. PI4P lipids and cholesterol are shown to be required for the global organization of the ROs and for viral genome replication. Consistently, inhibition of OSBP expression or function efficiently blocked EMCV RNA replication. In conclusion, we describe for the first time a cellular pathway involved in the biogenesis of cardiovirus ROs. Remarkably, the same pathway was reported to promote formation of the replication sites of hepatitis C virus, a member of the Flaviviridae family, but not other picornaviruses or flaviviruses. Thus, our results highlight the convergent recruitment by distantly related (+)RNA viruses of a host lipid-modifying pathway underlying formation of viral replication sites.

With a single exception, all isolates of hepatitis C virus (HCV) require adaptive mutations to replicate efficiently in cell culture. Here, we show that a major class of adaptive mutations regulates the activity of a cellular lipid kinase, phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase IIIα (PI4KA). HCV needs to stimulate PI4KA to create a permissive phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate-enriched membrane microenvironment in the liver and in primary human hepatocytes (PHHs). In contrast, in Huh7 hepatoma cells, the virus must acquire loss-of-function mutations that prevent PI4KA overactivation. This adaptive mechanism is necessitated by increased PI4KA levels in Huh7 cells compared with PHHs, and is conserved across HCV genotypes. PI4KA-specific inhibitors promote replication of unadapted viral isolates and allow efficient replication of patient-derived virus in cell culture. In summary, this study has uncovered a long-sought mechanism of HCV cell-culture adaptation and demonstrates how a virus can adapt to changes in a cellular environment associated with tumorigenesis.

The lipid kinase phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase III alpha (PI4KIII␣) is an endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-resident enzyme that synthesizes phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI4P). PI4KIII␣ is an essential host factor for hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication. Interaction with HCV nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A) leads to kinase activation and accumulation of PI4P at intracellular membranes. In this study, we investigated the structural requirements of PI4KIII␣ in HCV replication and enzymatic activity. Therefore, we analyzed PI4KIII␣ mutants for subcellular localization, reconstitution of HCV replication in PI4KIII␣ knockdown cell lines, PI4P induction in HCV-positive cells, and lipid kinase activity in vitro. All mutants still interacted with NS5A and localized in a manner similar to that of the full-length enzyme, suggesting multiple regions of PI4KIII␣ are involved in NS5A interaction and subcellular localization. Interestingly, the N-terminal 1,152 amino acids were dispensable for HCV replication, PI4P induction, and enzymatic function, whereas further N-terminal or C-terminal deletions were deleterious, thereby defining the minimal PI4KIII␣ core enzyme at a size of ca. 108 kDa. Additional deletion of predicted functional motifs within the C-terminal half of PI4KIII␣ also were detrimental for enzymatic activity and for the ability of PI4KIII␣ to rescue HCV replication, with the exception of a proposed nuclear localization signal, suggesting that the entire C-terminal half of PI4KIII␣ is involved in the formation of a minimal enzymatic core. This view was supported by structural modeling of the PI4KIII␣ C terminus, suggesting a catalytic center formed by an N-and C-terminal lobe and an armadillo-fold motif, which is preceded by three distinct alpha-helical domains probably involved in regulation of enzymatic activity. IMPORTANCEThe lipid kinase PI4KIII␣ is of central importance for cellular phosphatidylinositol metabolism and is a key host cell factor of hepatitis C virus replication. However, little is known so far about the structure of this 240-kDa protein and the functional importance of specific subdomains regarding lipid kinase activity and viral replication. This work focuses on the phenotypic analysis of distinct PI4KIII␣ mutants in different biochemical and cell-based assays and develops a structural model of the C-terminal enzymatic core. The results shed light on the structural and functional requirements of enzymatic activity and the determinants required for HCV replication. W orldwide, about 170 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). HCV is a positive-strand RNA virus and belongs to the family Flaviviridae. The viral genome encompasses about 9.6 kb and codes mainly for a polyprotein of about 3,000 amino acids (aa) that is flanked by nontranslated regions. The polyprotein is cleaved into 10 mature proteins by cellular and viral proteases: core, envelope glycoprotein 1 (E1) and E2, p7, and the nonstructural (NS) proteins NS2, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, NS5A, and NS5B (reviewed...

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are two positive-strand RNA viruses sharing a similar biology, but causing opposing infection outcomes, with HAV always being cleared and HCV establishing persistence in the majority of infections. To gain deeper insight into determinants of replication, persistence, and treatment, we established a homogenous cell-culture model allowing a thorough comparison of RNA replication of both viruses. By screening different human liver-derived cell lines with subgenomic reporter replicons of HAV as well as of different HCV genotypes, we found that Huh7-Lunet cells supported HAV-and HCV-RNA replication with similar efficiency and limited interference between both replicases. HAV and HCV replicons were similarly sensitive to interferon (IFN), but differed in their ability to establish persistent replication in cell culture. In contrast to HCV, HAV replicated independently from microRNA-122 and phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase IIIa and b (PI4KIII). Both viruses were efficiently inhibited by cyclosporin A and NIM811, a nonimmunosuppressive analog thereof, suggesting an overlapping dependency on cyclophilins for replication. However, analysis of a broader set of inhibitors revealed that, in contrast to HCV, HAV does not depend on cyclophilin A, but rather on adenosine-triphosphate-binding cassette transporters and FK506-binding proteins. Finally, silibinin, but not its modified intravenous formulation, efficiently inhibited HAV genome replication in vitro, suggesting oral silibinin as a potential therapeutic option for HAV infections. Conclusion: We established a cell-culture model enabling comparative studies on RNA replication of HAV and HCV in a homogenous cellular background with comparable replication efficiency. We thereby identified new host cell targets and potential treatment options for HAV and set the ground for future studies to unravel determinants of clearance and persistence. (HEPATOLOGY 2015;62:397-408) H epatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) are two hepatotropic positive-strand RNA viruses sharing a similar biology, but causing very different infection outcomes. Worldwide, approximately 160 million people are infected with HCV, a member of the Flaviviridae family. HCV establishes persistence in up to 70%-80% of cases, which often results in severe liver damage. This high rate of persistence is quite unusual for a positive-strand RNA virus, and the underlying reasons are only poorly understood. 1 In contrast, HAV, a picornavirus causing acute self-limited hepatitis, never leads to chronic infection. Counterintuitive to infection outcomes, HCV usually induces a high, long-lasting interferon

Intravenous silibinin (SIL) is an approved therapeutic that has recently been applied to patients with chronic hepatitis C, successfully clearing hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in some patients even in monotherapy. Previous studies suggested multiple antiviral mechanisms of SIL, however, the dominant mode of action has not been determined. We first analyzed the impact of SIL on replication of subgenomic replicons from different HCV genotypes in vitro and found a strong inhibition of RNA replication for genotype 1a and genotype 1b. In contrast, RNA replication and infection of genotype 2a were minimally affected by SIL. To identify the viral target of SIL we analyzed resistance to SIL in vitro and in vivo. Selection for drug resistance in cell culture identified a mutation in HCV nonstructural protein (NS) 4B conferring partial resistance to SIL. This was corroborated by sequence analyses of HCV from a liver transplant recipient experiencing viral breakthrough under SIL monotherapy. Again, we identified distinct mutations affecting highly conserved amino acid residues within NS4B, which mediated phenotypic SIL resistance also in vitro. Analyses of chimeric viral genomes suggest that SIL might target an interaction between NS4B and NS3/4A. Ultrastructural studies revealed changes in the morphology of viral membrane alterations upon SIL treatment of a susceptible genotype 1b isolate, but not of a resistant NS4B mutant or genotype 2a, indicating that SIL might interfere with the formation of HCV replication sites. Conclusion Mutations conferring partial resistance to SIL treatment in vivo and in cell culture argue for a mechanism involving NS4B. This novel mode of action renders SIL an attractive candidate for combination therapies with other directly acting antiviral drugs, particularly in difficult-to-treat patient cohorts.